


Crossed

by Djinnaat



Category: Sleepy Hollow (TV)
Genre: F/M, Family, Friendship/Love, Longing, Past Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-13
Updated: 2017-02-13
Packaged: 2018-09-23 23:20:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9686687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Djinnaat/pseuds/Djinnaat
Summary: This work takes place upon Abbie's return from the Catacombs.





	1. Chapter 1

Abbie wasn’t feeling like herself. She could’ve put it all down to the time she spent in the catacombs. Lethargic, on edge. It was a strange dichotomy: on the one hand, she felt like a bundle of nerves, but yet, at the same time, she struggled to concentrate and felt sluggish. Finally eating had made her feel bloated and gross. While she didn’t at all wish she were back in that hellish, lonely place, she almost resented having to bring fork to mouth to eat the nourishment that would bring her back to health.

“Really, Crane, this looks delicious, but I can’t eat another bite.”

“Ms. Mills, you have barely eaten at all. I understand that you haven’t had to eat while you were… away,” he paused, just long enough for Abbie to notice his hesitation, “but I am very concerned. You need to build up your strength, Abbie.”

He always called her by her given name when he was trying to persuade her, trying to reach her. Still, she could only do what she could do.

“Crane, I don’t think you want to see me lose what I HAVE eaten all over the table, so let’s just leave it at this, okay?”

Without waiting for him to respond, she got up from the table, took her half-eaten plate to the sink, and dumped it in the garbage disposal. After rinsing off her plate and setting it in the dishwasher, she climbed the stairs wordlessly, leaving Ichabod looking grim as he took in her weary demeanor.

Several days had passed, and Abbie’s appetite seemed to have returned. In fact, she couldn’t seem to get enough to eat. Ichabod was astounded at the amount of food she was putting away; where she picked at her food the first week or two after she returned, she now often had seconds on everything.

He was also glad to see she was filling out more; she had lost some weight while she was gone, so it was good to see the color returning to her cheeks, as well as the soft fullness returning to her face and body that he always loved.

For her part, Abbie was always hungry; it was like she couldn’t get enough to eat. She tried different combinations: salty and sweet; savory and sweet; hot and spicy. None of them seemed to satisfy the cravings she had developed.

Finally, Joe, Jenny and Ichabod teamed up and convinced her to see her general practitioner. They could see the changes that were taking place, and their concerned pleas finally made her make the appointment.

The doctor ran her through a complete battery of tests; basically, every bodily function and secretion was tested thoroughly. When she got the call to return for the results of her test, she asked Jenny to go with her. Of course, her overly attentive partner and best friend insisted on tagging along, too. After all, he was with her every day, so her health was of utmost concern to him.

When they went into the consultation room, Abbie should have known something was amiss when the doctor asked if she was sure she wanted everyone in the room. Since she was sure she was just probably suffering from some sort of bug, or maybe making up for some dehydration and malnutrition, as well as lack of sleep, she thought, sure, why not?

The tension in the room was palpable as the doctor looked from one person to another, then almost imperceptibly shaking his head, he said flatly, “Abbie, you’re pregnant.”


	2. Chapter 2

They all sat, stunned. Then, almost on cue, Ichabod and Jenny turned to Abbie, shock and horror written all over their faces.

“Abbie…”

“Leftenant…,” they both began simultaneously.

Abbie sat shaking her head, muttering “no, no” under her breath. 

“I have to get rid of it, doctor. I cannot keep this baby.”

The doctor looked on in sympathy and shook his head.

“I’m sorry, Abbie, you’re too far along. You’re several months out, even though you’re barely showing, and in your weakened state, being as anemic as you are, as well as suffering from mild malnutrition overall, I cannot in good conscience allow it. Plus,” he added, “in our state, it’s not legal at your stage. I’m sorry. I’ll give you all a few minutes, and then we’ll go over your care plan.”

There was complete silence as everyone digested what they just heard. Was it The Hidden One who had impregnated Abbie? Was it some other demonic force? All they knew was that she went in NOT pregnant, and somehow came out pregnant.

“Abbie, did anyone… touch you while you were there?” Ichabod finally asked the question on everyone’s mind.

“No, I was there all alone. The only other time I was NOT was when you and Pandora were there, but it was your spirits, not flesh.”

Jenny reached over and clasped her sister’s hand, overcome with guilt that her sister had gotten into this predicament to save her life. 

“Sis, we’re with you, no matter what. We’re going to do everything we can to get some answers.”

Abbie just nodded silently. By then, the doctor had returned with several prescriptions, as well as a booklet on pregnancy. 

As they left the doctor’s office, Ichabod was the first to speak.

“Miss Mills, Miss Jenny is right. We will find out what is going on. Please drop me at the Archives; there are some texts there I should like to consult.”

They stopped and dropped him off, then went by the pharmacy to fill her prescriptions. Several different vitamins and a mild sleep aid. A new beginning. A step into the unknown. Abbie had always wanted children, a big family, in fact, that she and a loving husband would nurture and love, providing the type of home that she and Jenny once had and so tragically lost. And now she was pregnant, not knowing who, or what, was the father, not even knowing if the child was fully human. Having no husband to look out for her. Heck, the closest thing she had to a husband was Crane. Well, at least she knew he was there for her and would be there for her child, no matter what.

Exhausted, Abbie climbed the stairs and, not bothering to undress, laid down on the bed. Jenny followed and laid down next to her, draping her arm over her and leaning her head on her sister’s shoulder. When Ichabod came home that night, he found them like that, both fast asleep.

“Mama, what are you doing here,?” she asked, shocked and pleased to see her mother, dressed in her favorite floral dress, her soft curls blowing in the breeze. They were back on the porch of their old house, the one they lived in before Dad left and Mama became ill.

Her mother came down the steps, smiling lovingly at her eldest daughter. “Don’t be afraid, Abbie. Something wondrous is happening to you. This was meant to be.”

Frowning, Abbie looked at her mother, shaking her head in disbelief. “No, this can’t be real. Why would you tell me this? This is probably some demon child waiting to be born into the world. I have to stop it.”

By then, Lori had reached Abbie and took both hands in hers. “Honey, you don’t understand, but you will soon. Just trust me. I wouldn’t steer you wrong. Take care of yourself and this child, and let Ichabod take care of the both of you.”

With that, the image of her mother started to fade, the warmth of her hands slowly dissipating as Abbie stood, dumbstruck. 

When Abbie awoke, Jenny and Crane were standing by her, Crane in his dressing gown, Jenny still in her street clothes.

“What, what is it?” she asked, looking at the dumbfounded, stricken looks on their faces.

“You were screaming, Mama, Mama, at the top of your lungs, Abbs,” Jenny said, running shaking hands through her tousled curls.

Putting aside his usual sense of propriety, Ichabod sat down on the bed and took Abbie’s hand. Flanked by her sister and best friend, Abbie told them of her dream.

“Guys, do you think it could be real? I mean, could it be that it isn’t something… bad?” Abbie asked, now more confused than ever.

“Miss Mills, I think the prudent thing to do, and I understand that, in modern medicine, this thing is possible, is to have testing performed to make sure the fetus is normal. That should go far in reassuring all of us.”

Abbie nodded silently. First thing in the morning, she would make the appointment.


	3. Chapter 3

A few days later, they were back in the doctor’s office. In their research, they found that there was also a way to test paternity prior to birth. The problem was, without knowing the father, they weren’t sure how to go about it without seeming suspicious.

“We could always say that it was a one-night stand, and the guy was just passing through town. That way, we can’t produce the guy for testing,” Jenny suggested.

Immediately, Ichabod’s pointing finger shot up.

“Out of the question! I will not have Ms. Mills’ integrity besmirched by painting her as a woman of loose morals. If there needs to be a man produced, I offer myself. As her closest male friend, I have no qualms about helping in this instance.”

Jenny and Abbie looked at each other, both smirking slightly.

“Well, Crane,” Abbie finally answered, having managed to assume a neutral expression, “that’s great of you to do that. I think, especially with us living together, it would raise less questions.”

Ichabod silently nodded. Little did Abbie know, there was a small, but growing, part of Ichabod that wished it were so…

“Congratulations, Miss Mills, you have a healthy baby here, looking to be about 5 months in.”

Ichabod couldn’t help but wonder if she had been with Agent Reynolds without him knowing. No, it was impossible, not in that timeframe. And if she had been, she wouldn’t have been so shocked and distraught. This truly was something supernatural.

“Mr. Crane, Miss Mills, if you could please come down to the lab, we can also do the paternity test.”

They had explained that Abbie had been seeing someone prior, and she wanted to reassure Ichabod that the child was truly his. The lab assistant shrugged; she had seen and heard everything, so it was no big deal to her.

“You’ll receive the results in 5-7 business days. Good luck to the both of you.”

The next five days seemed agonizingly long. They were constantly online, searching for the email alert that the test was ready. Finally, it came. 

Jenny and Joe were there, along with Ichabod and Abbie. Hands shaking, Abbie opened the report. The instructions said it would show concentric circles around the regions where the parents originated from. The pink circles showed West Africa, North America, and Germany. Abbie knew that one of her forebears had been a German immigrant, many generations ago, with the remainder of her family tree comprised of Native American and African ancestry. But they were dumbstruck by the paternal family tree. The blue circles were concentrated in Northern Europe, solely in England and Scotland. It couldn’t be…

Stunned, Jenny was the first to break the silence.

“Um, guys, is there something you’re not telling us…?” she said, looking from Ichabod to Abbie.

Both of them had yet to speak, instead looking at each other, mouths agape.

Finally, Ichabod was able to speak.

“I swear to you, Miss Jenny, I have never been inappropriate with your sister. I hold her in the highest esteem, and I, I mean, I can’t, this simply…” he stuttered, unable to process what he was seeing.

“There has to be some explanation here. This didn’t happen by osmosis,” Joe said, a frown on his usually pleasant face.

Abbie ran her hands over her eyes, overwhelmed and confused. Sure, she loved Crane, and if she was honest with herself, she had started developing more than friendly feelings toward him, but a child? She simply stood and climbed the stairs, got under her bedcovers, and stared at the far wall until sleep claimed her.

Jenny and Ichabod went upstairs separately, poking their heads in to check on her. She had fallen fast asleep, which was just as well. The combined shock of her long imprisonment, an unexplained pregnancy, and carrying the child of a man with whom she had never been intimate, well, that would be enough to exhaust anyone.

That night, Ichabod tossed and turned. His feelings for Abbie were so raw, and he had not shared them with anyone. To know that they had somehow conceived a child without knowing one another, it seemed like the height of unfairness: that he should have somehow impregnated the one person he would die for, and yet he had no knowledge or memory of it. What good was an eidetic memory if he forgot one of the seminal moments of his reawakening?

“Ichabod, my love, do not be troubled.”

“Katrina?”

“Yes, Ichabod, it is I,” she said, just as lovely as she once was, flame-colored hair dancing in the breeze.

He ran to her, taking her into his arms and holding her tightly.

“Forgive me, Katrina, forgive me. I had no choice,” he sobbed, his voice breaking.

Katrina stepped back from his embrace and smoothed the hair out of his eyes.

“No, Ichabod, you set me free from the evil that had taken root. It is because you did what you did that I can stand before you, free and at peace. You did what you were called to do.”

With that, Ichabod collapsed in his late wife’s arms, sobbing until the tears no longer fell.

“Katrina, why are you here? Why now?” he finally asked.

“I come to bring you good news, Ichabod, and to lighten your heart.”

Katrina’s dream self went on to explain that his essence had mingled with Abbie’s when his spirit ventured into the Catacombs. While it was impossible for normal humans to procreate in such a way, because Witnesses were creatures of spirit as much as flesh, his spirit melded with hers as they escaped back into the current realm. And since time had been accelerated, Abbie’s body was still under the influence of the Catacombs; thus, minutes turned to hours, hours to days, and days to weeks. By the time she was back in the current realm, she was already a few months along.

After saying one last farewell, the woman he once loved more than life itself kissed him and gave her blessing, saying that one day she would see him again, but until then, exhorted him to do his best to protect the other Witness and bring her joy.

When Ichabod awakened, he tearfully thanked Katrina’s spirit, and thanked God for allowing her to finally be at peace and redeemed. He then ran straight to Abbie’s room, forgetting all decorum, shaking her awake with the news of the dream/vision he had.

Abbie then reminded him of the dream she had of her mother. She looked up at him, and she saw the answer to so many unasked questions. Yes, he loved her. Yes, she loved him as well. She smiled at him, and he smiled back, taking her small hand in his.

“Leftenant, Abbie, we will make this work. I will always be by your side, until the end of time.”

Abbie’s smile grew even wider as she kissed his hand.

“I know, Crane, I know.”

Announcement

Jennifer Katherine Mills Crane, 8 lbs. 3 oz., 18 inches long, was born August 19, 2017 to Ichabod Nathaniel and Grace Abigail Mills Crane. Mother and baby are fine and resting well. The family recently relocated to Washington, D.C. for Mr. Crane’s position as curator of the Smithsonian Museum. His wife, Grace “Abbie” Crane, is formerly of the Sleepy Hollow Police Department and was recently hired by the Federal Bureau of Investigations.


End file.
